How to Get Free Addrees Mailing Labels and More
The solution to this is fairly obvious and that is to simply get preprinted address labels and save yourself a lot of unnecessary trouble and wasted time. Labels also make the letter look more professional. Many people I speak to have asked me how in the world do you get so many address labels in the mail? Most of them claimed to resorting to either ordering and paying for labels through some internet or direct mail offer and others bought blank labels from the office store and typed on them. The latter option is definitely a feasible alternative and not too expensive, but if you want to save time and as much money as possible, you really have no business grueling over your keyboard frantically trying to adjust margins and format etc, things that take sometimes way too long than planned.
Your best bet in almost any scenario a person could come up with is to find a way to get labels for free. And this is how you do it:
Okay, the trick here is you need to subtly (that’s without solicitation) get your name and address information into the appropriate databases. There are two easy ways to do this. One, you can go on a website of a company that you know gives out labels to individuals as a marketing/PR technique and find their Contact page or signup page. Either one is fine, as long as they ask for your postal address. These places, just like any thriving company, keep close inventory on who is interested even slightly in them; then, they will start sending you mail updates, which usually ask for monetary donations along with basic information about the organization.
Note that more often than not, it is non-profit companies/organizations who dish out free labels. To think about it from their perspective, sending out free stuff is not only a great way to do something generous for their donators, but also a very subtle guilt inducing technique that often works well, as much as you try not to let it. So again, first go on a few sites and make sure you check off (if applicable) a box that indicates you want mail to your home and uncheck the box that says they will email you info. Unless of course you really want them to.
The next thing to do is just wait. Give it a week to ten days. It gets to be a little bit of trial and error at this point because the freebies that these organizations send are not always labels, but sometimes are calendars, pads of paper, key chains, etc. So be patient.
Finally, hopefully, you will receive in the mail your very first set of free labels from company X. They will ask for a donation on a paper that comes with it. They key here if you want tons of cool and unique labels is that you really should send in a small donation. Many people are under the impression that the minimum donation required is the lowest option to check off on the payment slip, and that is usually from $10 to $25. But the truth is, they’ll take anything you are willing to give. So find the donation options and check the box next to “other.” Write a check for $2 or something and send it in. Now it’s time to sit back and wait for the mailman each day so you can rip open your mail in search of the hundreds of mailing labels that are about to come your way. It’s exciting in a way and it also gives a bit of personality to your otherwise boring white mailing envelope.
Why does this work? Well, once you donate anything, they stick you on a list of everyone who replied to that particular mailing. And since that particular mailing had a free gift of labels, you are moved over to the list of everyone who paid after getting the free labels. (If they had sent a pad of paper and you responded, you’d go on a different list). So you are on the list and this list is then sold to other nonprofit organizations that use the same tactics in raising money. Soon enough your name as a label keeper will be spread around the non-profit realm and the labels will come pouring in. It’s fantastically fun in its own mundane way.
And now for the references.
The following companies are ones that I personally received labels from after doing everything I advised you to do above. You’ll have to look up the web page address, but here are the names to start with. Good Luck!
The Nature Conservancy
www.NFCR.org
Disabled American Veterans (www.dav.org/donations)
American Heart Association
March of Dimes
Native American Children’s Fund
Sesame Workshop (featuring big bird and Oscar among other characters)
REMEMBER! You don’t have to pay a thing to get this stuff free, but as I described, it would just help speed things up and maybe get you a whole lot more.
